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Clemmie Telford lists her thoughts on 5am starts with the kids

Clemmie Telford – mum-of-two (soon to be three) and founder of the brilliant blog Mother of All Lists – shares her 5am thoughts, in list form. They include: food-planning, texting fellow parents-of-young-kids and not reflecting on how much sleep she’s had…

When this list was first published (April 2016), Clemmie Telford was living in Peckham with her two boys – Bertie, three, and Woody, 15 months and working as a creative at Grey London, while writing her blog: Mother of all Lists. She is now expecting her third baby (and is no longer working in advertising).

I’m an early riser. Always have been. But having kids has taken that to a whole new level. Seriously, anything after 6.30am feels like a lie-in! But you know what? Rather than fighting the fact that I’m an ‘early bird’ (and so are my offspring it seems) it’s time to embrace it.

So here are the things I do with an early start…

Clemmie Telford’s list for the 5am club

Marvel at my youngest. He’s 15 months and often ends up in bed with me. He’s a whirlwind when he is awake so I enjoy having the time to see him be peaceful.

Plan what I’m going to eat for breakfast. And maybe even lunch. And probably dinner too.

Consider whether it’s a hair wash day and therefore whether I should get up.

Or, worse still, persuade myself to get up and crack out a hiit routine. It’s always so much better to get exercise out the way. Leaving the evening free for important stuff like gin and TV.

Text friends with small kids. I can’t tell you the number of full-on conversations I have pre 6.45am these days.

Scroll through social media. Usually catching up on the lives of friends in a different time zone. It’s hard not to feel envious of their sun-filled lives while I’m stuck in London – I love this city. But goodness it’s bleak in March.

Hope for a cup of tea from my husband.

Make a mental ‘To Do List’. Or if it’s really important write it on my phone. Lists are my everything.

Resist the temptation to send work emails. Nobody likes that person who has filled your inbox before breakfast.

Scroll through social media again. Is it an addiction? Maybe. Ok definitely.

Shove crackers in my children’s mouths. They want breakfast as soon as they wake. A few of crackers or breadsticks buy us a precious half an hour in bed.

Avoid calculating how much sleep I’ve had. I kicked that habit long ago. Nothing good to come of it.

Chuckle at whatsapps sent by my siblings/friends who still party hard. Realise I am happy to be getting up at this ungodly hour rather than rolling-in. Wonder if I am dull. Decide I don’t care. I love a night out, but nothing beats a good kip.

Enjoy the bubble. It’s so blissful being up before the world. No expectation. No deadlines. No being dictated to by an alarm. Being awake early means a chance to start the day on your terms… even if that does involve having a small child repeatedly stick their finger up your nose.